A somewhat different Mother's Day

Okay, okay, I have learnt my lesson. Not only should one avoid the shops during the weekends, but one should especially avoid the shops a day prior to any celebration. Yesterday evening, I went to the shops to get my groceries and found ourselves trapped in a huge crowd. You see, in the UK, Mother's Day is the first Sunday of March, i.e. today!

As we entered the supermarket, the first aisle was strategically filled with Mother's Day knickknacks: the row of cards, chocolates, gifts and flowers. My princess innocently asked me, Mummy, can I buy a Mother's Day's card? Oh dear... What was I supposed to say? No? There's no need to?

So, I gave the children some space by allowing the older ones to linger at that section while I made a dash for the food section (first making sure that they didn't buy anything they couldn't afford; read - nothing outrageously expensive!). I felt a tinge of sadness as I nostalgically remember their late dad teaming up with them when they were working up on a surprise for me(Mother's Day / my birthday). Now, they no longer have their daddy to conspire with and are still under age to go out to get anything on their own. How are they going to manage? Or better still, how am I going to make sure they can still do the things they used to do? Of course I am not concerned with material showers but I understand the children's personal desire to get something for their mum - just like everyone else.

When I got up this morning, I busied myself in the kitchen by baking a cake for the children and preparing breakfast. Once everything was done, with coffee in hand, I stepped into the living room to enjoy my breakfast when, lo and behold, there was a surprise waiting for me!

3 cards (+ 1 Tesco brochure for flower orders on Mother's Day), a box of chocolates, a bead and shell necklace (Twin H told me it took him a week to drill two holes through the shell), and a hanging card were laid out on the table for me. I kissed each child thank you and read the card my Princess chose:

The most thoughtful people

are thought about the most,

and wished the very best

of everything...

always.

This warm and loving message

is especially meant for you

Because it's filled with gratitude

for the thoughtful things you do...

And with it comes a special wish

that Mother's Day will bring

All the joy you so deserve

and the best of everything.

Have a Wonderful Mother's Day

To: Mama

Love from Izz Zh@reef, Ulfah, Dean, Hanees,

White and Grey the hamsters.

Of course, the emotional me could not help being teary. As if that wasn't enough, they instructed me to open up the card - and in it was a picture of their late dad:

Imagine them remembering their late dad on Mother's Day! I now realise that they probably think of their dad as much as I do, even though they don't say it out loud...

(squiggly scribbles - oops...)

I later brought them out for ice-cream (the weather was very promising!!) and some goodies. It was too sunny to stay indoors, but ironically, the great weather only brought back memories of the good days spent out with Mamasarah's family and the late Mr D. Thus, Mother's Day evoked a mixture of feelings that are very precious to me.

To my children I dearly love (a.k.a the Fantastic Four),
Thank you very much for your wonderful gesture and thoughts. What I only ask for on Mother's Day (and every other day) is that I can really be a good mother to you so that you will all grow up into good Muslims blessed by the Almighty.

To all mothers out there,

Happy Mother's Day.

Let me end with an interesting quotation, worth pondering upon:

"The moment a child is born, the mother is also born. She never existed before.

The woman existed, but the mother, never.

A mother is something absolutely new."

Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh quotes (Indian Spiritual leader, 1931 - 1990)

Hopefully, we can all be excellent mothers (and fathers for the opposite species) to all whom we consider our children.